Normally on Fridays, I like to talk about movies, only there’s only one major new release so we’ll touch on that briefly and then get to some of the new awards nominations that have just come out. Joining blockbuster box-office behemoths Breaking Dawn, The Muppets, Happy Feet Two, and Immortals (those are the movies who’ll get the most viewers this weekend) we have something a little, em, controversial. A film all about sex addiction. (There. I said it.) Michael Fassbender stars alongside Carey Mulligan in Shame, which is all about a New York City yuppie with one thing on his mind, and only one thing. This is not, however, a comedy (hence the title and rather brooding star) and it got all sorts of raves at film festivals, although with an NC-17 rating, it may not be for everyone. That said, Fassbender is definitely on a fast track as an actor, and he does tend to pick interesting movies (Inglourious Basterds, X-Men) plus, he’s likely to get nominated for this or his other film, A Dangerous Method, in the coming months. Expect to hear plenty about this guy. Shame looks like very powerful, if not exactly uplifting, stuff. Will you check it out? If you do, let us know what you think!

Speaking of awards, the Independent Spirit Award nominations were just announced, and some of our favorites made that list. Rachael Harris (who’s about to be on Fox’s new comedy New Girl – which is aces) has landed an Independent Spirit Award nom for her superb performance in a little film – that you can and should rent – called Natural Selection. It’s really, really good. And wildly funny. The Independent Spirit Awards are that show that always happens the day before the Academy Awards on the beach in Los Angeles where nobody dresses up and they play up the whole anti-Oscar thing. In recent years, however, the Spirit Awards have also started to share nominees and winners with Oscar, so they’re not quite as independent as they’d have you believe. George Clooney’s movie The Descendants got several nominations (although curiously he didn’t) and Beginners was also tapped repeatedly. Including a nomination for Christopher Plummer, who will most assuredly get an Oscar nod. Beginners is a terrific film, by the way, and another one totally worth renting.

Of course, the other big awards buzz surrounds the Grammy nominations. Not too shocking really, when you think about it: lots of action for Kanye, Adele, Bruno, and the Foo Fighters, with some interesting side notes. I was especially pleased to see Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons, Death Cab for Cutie, and Radiohead get recognized. Plus The Band Perry – that plucky little sibling threesome, also scored big, which is great to see. In fact, we’ll make today’s poll all about the Grammys. Now don’t forget to cast your PCA votes because our polls will close sooner than you think. Have a great weekend!